World Bank approves $350m for Turkey's renewable energy

ANKARA — The World Bank announced Monday $350 million of financing for renewable energy projects in Turkey.

The bank said $300 million, which Turkey will have 18 years to pay back and after a five-year grace period, will come from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

The other $50 million, which they will have 20 years to pay back after a 10-year grace period, will be provided by the Clean Technology Fund, a multilateral funding managed by the World Bank.

Turkey generates 43 percent of its energy needs from natural gas, a quarter from both coal and hydro-electricity and 7 percent from renewables.

Turkey's Renewable Energy Integration project will be implemented by Turkey's electricity authority, with a guarantee from the Turkish Treasury.

The funding aims to help Turkey meet its increasing power demand by facilitating large-scale renewable energy generation.

"Turkey has considerable renewable energy potential. However, substantial public and private investment is needed to fully exploit this resource," said Martin Raiser, World Bank country director for Turkey.

"As the World Bank, we have supported Turkey's energy sector reforms for over a decade, with the objective of making Turkey's energy sector cleaner, more secure, and less dependent on imports. This project is another important step in this direction."

The World Bank also provided financing for the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, which carries Azerbaijani oil to Turkey, and has helped with other energy projects related to the the South Caucasus and energy storage in central Turkey.